The present invention relates to a blade rubber and a vehicle wiper device.
Conventionally, a wiper blade for a vehicle wiper device includes a lever member and a blade rubber having an elongate shape. The blade rubber includes a basal portion, which is gripped by the lever member and a wiping portion, which extends downward from the basal portion to wipe a wiped surface.
A common blade rubber includes a neck portion located between a basal portion and a wiping portion. In an unloaded state, the neck portion extends in a downward hanging direction perpendicular to a width direction. During a wiping operation, the neck portion bends so that the wiping portion inclines downward and toward an opposite side of a travelling direction. The wiping portion slidably contacts a wiped surface in an inclined posture and wipes the wiped surface. When this blade rubber is in a reversing operation, the wiping portion changes its extending direction to cross over the downward hanging direction so that the wiping portion extends toward a different side, while the blade rubber rapidly moves upward and downward. This generates an impact noise, i.e., a reversing operation noise.
For example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication 2001-322535 discloses a wiping portion, which includes a hollow portion extending in a longitudinal direction and projecting portions, which project toward two opposite sides in a width direction. This structure is directed to prevent a generation of the reversing operation noise.
However, the blade rubber described above increases rigidity in the wiping portion in an up/down direction, and is not likely to be deformed elastically in the up/down direction. This may lower the ability of the blade rubber to follow a curved wiped surface and lower the wiping ability.